Luke 16:15

15 He said to them, "You people make yourselves look righteous to others, but God knows your hearts; what people regard highly is an abomination before God!

Luke 16:15 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 16:15

And he said unto them
That is, Jesus said unto them, as the Syriac and Persic versions express it: "ye are they which justify yourselves before men": from the sins of injustice, unfaithfulness, covetousness, and all others; and would be thought, and appear to be righteous; but it is only in the sight of men, who can only see the outside of things, and judge thereby:

but God knoweth your hearts;
and what is in them, the deceitfulness, hypocrisy, covetousness, and cruelty of them, which are hid from the eyes of men:

for that which is highly esteemed among men;
or what is high in the account and esteem of men, as the outward appearance of these men for morality, religion, and holiness; their zeal for the ceremonies of the law, and the traditions of the elders:

is abomination in the sight of God;
who knew full well from what principles, and with what views they acted, to gain popular applause, and amass riches to themselves, without any concern for the glory of God, and the good of men: see ( Isaiah 65:5 ) .

Luke 16:15 In-Context

13 No servant can be slave to two masters, for he will either hate the first and love the second, or scorn the second and be loyal to the first. You can't be a slave to both God and money."

14 The P'rushim heard all this, and since they were money-lovers, they ridiculed him.

15 He said to them, "You people make yourselves look righteous to others, but God knows your hearts; what people regard highly is an abomination before God!

16 Up to the time of Yochanan there were the Torah and the Prophets. Since then the Good News of the Kingdom of God has been proclaimed, and everyone is pushing to get in.

17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter in the Torah to become void.